


Raggedsplash's Contract

by SilverWinterr



Series: Stories from Falling Leaves [3]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Protective Mom, Secret Relationship, ShadowClan (Warriors), Things are okay for a second, ThunderClan (Warriors), Unplanned Pregnancy, and back to enemies, and then they aren't, kind of, more hurt then comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-15
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:34:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25921384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverWinterr/pseuds/SilverWinterr
Summary: Before the clans fell, the Shadowclan warrior Raggedsplash fell in love with a warrior from Thunderclan, leading to a series of tragedies and downfalls that ends with her fated arrangement with Redthorn. Many know of the strange she-cat that follows in the shadow the leader of the Dark Forest, doing his bidding without question or hesitation, but very few know the story that led her to his side...
Relationships: Raggedsplash/Gildedleaf
Series: Stories from Falling Leaves [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881139
Kudos: 3





	1. The Gathering

“Ow, stop pushing me!”

“Dude, chill out, you can see fine from there!”

“No I can’t! Come on! This is my first Gathering!”

“Will you two knock it off, we’re gonna get in tr-”

“Beetlepaw! Jetpaw! Raggedpaw! Settle down!”

Raggedpaw growled when a warrior’s shadow leered over the three new apprentices, amber eyes burning. “Get yourselves together! You’ll make everyone think Shadowclan doesn’t train their apprentices correctly!”

Jetpaw bowed her head. “S-sorry, Drizzleblaze. We’ll be quiet.”

The warrior narrowed his eyes and stalked off. Raggedpaw elbowed Beetlepaw with a soft snarl. “Great, now I’m in trouble too. Will you two stop fighting for ten seconds, _please_?”

Beetlepaw scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Don’t remember asking you for help.”

Jetpaw shoved at her brother. “Why are you such an asshole all the time? Would it hurt to be nice once in a while?”

And then they were at it again. Raggedpaw looked away from her quarelling siblings and caught the gaze of an apprentice not far away who was watching the whole thing with amusement.

“What are you looking at?” she snapped.

He chuckled. “Looks like you got your paws full with them!”

Who the hell was this guy? She glanced around at the cats he was sitting with and realized he was from Thunderclan. Those squirrel-chasers were always so nosy. She turned away pointedly. “It’s none of your business,” she growled.

“I know, I know, I just can’t help but notice.” To her great annoyance, he’d padded over. “I’m Gildedpaw, by the way.”

For a moment, she considered just not giving her name away to this annoying little rat, but then she sighed, rolling her eyes. “Raggedpaw.”

“What? Really? That’s not a very nice name to give to someone!”

She looked at him strangely, faintly offended. “Is there a problem with my name? I kinda like it! Makes me sound tough!” She pawed at her unkempt fur that she refused, point-blank, to straighten out. “It’s better than Gildedpaw anyways. Makes you sound like a pussy.”

To her surprise, Gildedpaw laughed at that. “I think it sounds regal. And if you like your name, then I’m sorry if I offended you. Cultural differences I guess.”

“Yeah, whatever.” But she at least appreciated that he apologized and didn’t mind that he sat next to her when the leaders began talking. Thankfully, he chose not to continue his annoying commentary throughout the Gathering and didn’t speak again until the clans were beginning to break up.

Raggedpaw drifted back over to Jetpaw’s side and was following Shadowclan over the log bridge. 

“Raggedpaw!”

She looked back and saw Gildedpaw moving away to be with his clanmates. “I’ll see you next Gathering, okay?”

And, to her surprise, she nodded and called “See you later!” before climbing onto the bridge after her sister.


	2. Innocence of Two

Raggedpaw sat by the border, tail flicking impatiently as she looked over at Thunderclan territory. The moon was shining bright enough above her head to illuminate her surroundings, offering her a view of the world in front of her where, hopefully, her friend would soon appear.

Just then, she caught a flash of gold as he came trotting through Thunderclan territory, stopping right at the border and blinking. He looked around, confused.

She had to hold back a laugh as she crept around him silently, crouched and hiding within the bushes. When the moment was right, she sprung forward silently, landing squarely on his back. The Thunderclan cat yowled and rolled over, taking her with him. She yelped with laughter as she bounced away, tail swishing behind her. “Gotcha, Gildedpaw!”

The golden apprentice scrambled to his feet, shaking leaf litter that was clinging to his pelt. “Raggedpaw! Would it be too much to ask to be greeted like a normal cat?!”

“Far too much.” She purred and stepped forward, brushing her muzzle over his shoulder. “Admit it - you like it when I sneak up on you.”

A mischievous smile crept across his face. “Oh, is that what you think? How about when I drop down at you from the trees?”

Raggedpaw scoffed. “Yeah, right, like I appreciate a large fluffy squirrel on my back.”

He crouched, wiggling his hindquarters. “Fluffy squirrel, am I? I’ll teach you to disrespect a noble Thunderclan warrior!”

He launched himself forward and bowled her over and the two tussled together, playfully batting at each other and squeaking with laughter. As they did nearly every night, since the first time, the warriors of Starclan twinkling in the sky.

...

“Raggedpaw...Raggedpaw! Hey, Raggedpaw!!”

The she-cat jerked awake, squinting against the harsh light bleeding into the den. A black she-cat was standing over her, poking her shoulder. ”Come on, Raggedpaw, it’s nearly sunhigh! What are you doing, still sleeping?!”

She groaned and rolled over, pushing herself to her feet. She yawned widely and followed Jetpaw sleepily from the apprentices’ den. She’d been out with Gildedpaw all night and her muscles still ached from all their playing. She wasn’t looking forward to all of their training today.

“What’s with you, Raggedpaw?” Her sister was looking at her quizzically. “Why are you so tired all the time? You were never like this before. 

Raggedpaw only shrugged and took the lead towards the fresh-kill pile. “Just have trouble sleeping I guess.”

Jetpaw watched her take a piece of fresh-kill, sitting next to her and watching her with concern. “Maybe you should see Nettleberry about that. I’m sure he’s got some herbs or something that will help.”

She grunted but didn’t respond, digging into the mouse she’d chosen. She wasn’t going to admit that it had nothing to do with her sleep - how could she explain to Jetpaw, or anyone for that matter, that she was seeing a Thunderclan apprentice every night? She couldn’t...no, nobody could ever find out.

Still, she felt a soft touch at her ear and looked over. Jetpaw was smiling, a little sadly at her. “You don’t have to tell me what’s up if you don’t want to, okay? I just want to make sure you’re alright. I care about you, Raggedpaw.”

She paused, quickly gulping down the piece she had in her mouth. “I care about you too, Jetpaw.”

They finished their meal in silence, but Raggedpaw felt the heavy weight of guilt settling on her stomach.


	3. Forbidden Love

She was crouched at their spot, where they always met when the moon shone above their heads. Hidden in the bushes, as she always did, waiting for him to appear. Eventually he did, taller, more powerful then he’d been as a young apprentice, a heavyset Thunderclan cat. She silently chuckled to herself. As expected - he was all brawn while she hadn’t grown too much, still smallish and scrawny, but nobody could deny that she was strong and fast, perfect for sneaking and striking suddenly, as all Shadowclan cats should.

As he approached, she carefully selected her position, stepping around behind him and getting ready to strike. Just as she leaped out of the bushes, however, he whipped around and met her head on. She let out a confused noise as she crashed into his waiting paws, finding herself suddenly flipped around and slammed onto her back. He was standing over her now, an arrogant smile on his face. “Gotcha, Raggedsplash. About time, too! I know the way you strike - you can’t sneak up on me anymore!”

She hissed and wriggled out from under him, shaking out her pelt. “Dammit, Gildedleaf! That hurt!”

He flicked his tail and scoffed. “Like it’s a pleasant experience to be jumped on every other night.”

She glared at him, determined to make him think she was angry, but that expression he was giving her, those warm, confident eyes and it melted away quickly. She gave him a smile as well and stepped forward to touch noses with him. “How have you been, Gildedleaf? How are things in Thunderclan?”

He opened his mouth to respond and then stopped, staring at her. He let out a laugh and shoved at her playfully. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing! Trying to get info on Thunderclan!”

Raggedsplash snickered. “Guilty!”

He flicked his tail and shrugged. “Well it hasn’t been bad. But Gleamclaw is telling me that I need to pick a mate already. Says I’m getting too old to be single. And Frostpetal has been giving me googly eyes.”

She felt a stab of something in her chest...was it jealousy? Anger? Spite? She couldn’t tell but it wasn’t pleasant and she felt a dark dislike for both Gleamclaw and Frostpetal. “Oh? And have you been making eyes back?”

Gildedleaf snorted. “No. There’s plenty of other perfectly good Thunderclan warriors that she can pick instead.” He blinked and looked at her strangely. She felt her heart leap for some reason. All of a sudden, she was terrified of what he’d say next. Terrified...but also excited.

“I’d rather have you.”

She felt something in her melt, leaving a feeling of heat in her stomach. Something that burned wonderfully and horribly. Because she felt the same - she loved him too. After all the time they spent together, all the nights they spent playing and enjoying each others’ company...of course she would love him.

But he was from a different clan. Their relationship was wrong by Starclan’s law. And how would it even work, with each so loyal to clans that always opposed each other.

She blinked. “Y-yeah...I feel the same way. I...I love you, Gildedleaf.” The worse were out before she could stop them, but she meant them, with all of her heart. “I wish we could spend our lives together.”

He nodded, moving closer until they were barely inches apart. “You know, there is a way. There’s a way we can.”

Raggedsplash tilted her head. “There is? How?” She looked worried. “You’re not talking about running away are you?”

He shook his head. “No. But you can join Thunderclan with me.”

The moment shattered and Raggedsplash laughed. She couldn’t help it, she couldn’t stop herself, but it was such a ridiculous request! Her, leave Shadowclan! And not just leave but join Thunderclan! For a second, she thought Gildedleaf was joking, but then she saw the look on his face - confused, even a little hurt.

She stopped immediately. “Wait, you’re serious.”

He nodded, looking eager. “Yeah, just think about it! You and me in Thunderclan, together! We won’t have to hide anymore, we can spend however much time we want together! Go hunting, go on patrols, fight side by side instead of avoid each other in battles!”

She sighed and shook her head. “Gildedleaf. No, there’s no way I can leave Shadowclan.”

His eagerness died away and he frowned. “Are you saying that you’re lying then? You don’t really love me?”

Raggedsplash scoffed and shoved him lightly, but there was nothing playful this time. “No, of course I wasn’t lying! I just care about my clan! I can’t just leave them!”

“Not even for me?”

“No.”

Gildedleaf looked like he was going to argue but then he just sighed. “Alright. I’m sorry for asking, I should have known what your answer would be.” He looked up at her. “Will you accept my apology?”

She wanted to stay mad at him, she really did, but his eyes just melted her heart once again and she sighed softly. After a moment, she responded; “Yes. Yes, I forgive you. Lets just...enjoy the time we have, okay? Maybe someday we’ll be able to work this out.”

He nodded back and pressed forward against her. The moon gleamed above, watching the two warriors as they spent the night at each other's side, as if it were their last night together.


	4. Bad Blood

It was inevitable that Shadowclan and Thunderclan would meet in battle. It wasn’t exactly a hard thing to do these days - Applestar and Ravenstar hated each other more than anything and clashed all the time. But still, it was always a rush of adrenaline when Ravenstar came into camp and called the warrior to battle - either to fight Thunderclan over territory they’d tried to claim or test their limits herself.

It was one of the former days - Thunderclan had placed scent markers in Shadowclan territory and had warriors ready to fight for it.

Ravenstar was storming through the camp, yelling out names of warriors and apprentices that would join the fighting. Raggedsplash stood with Jetscale and Beetleflight, anxious for the fighting to begin.

Beetleflight was almost vibrating with excitement. “Oh I can’t wait to get my claws into those Thunderclan fuckers! I’m getting sick and tired of them thinking they own the whole world!”

Jetscale scoffed and swatted him over the head with her tail. “Calm down or you’ll hurt yourself!”

“Shut up, Jetscale, I’m just excited for the fight!”

“Yeah, but you’re being really annoying!”

“Then stop listening!”

“Will you two stop arguing for two seconds,” Raggedsplash cut in, loudly.

Beetleflight suddenly turned to her, a strange expression on his face. “You sure you want to fight, Raggedsplash?”

She curled her lip. “And what is that supposed to mean? Of course I do!”

He shook his head. “Oh, it’s nothing. Look, we’re leaving!”

And, indeed, Ravenstar was leading her cats out of camp. The three siblings followed, but Jetscale and Beetleflight continued to argue until the deputy turned around and snapped at them to shut up.

As soon as they burst through the trees at the border, where Thunderclan’s stench was heavy in the air, they saw the force of warriors - it almost looked like all their warriors were there, in a line blocking the way across Thunderclan territory. Applestar, the oldest of the five leaders, glared at them. “This piece of territory is rightfully ours! We won’t accept your keeping of it any longer!”

Ravenstar said nothing, just launching herself forward with a screech. The rest of her warriors followed suit, each falling onto a Thunderclan warrior until the forest filled with the sound of screaming cats.

Raggedsplash grabbed onto a brown tabby and bit hard into his shoulder. The warriors yowled and tried to buck her off, but she wriggled out of the way of his strike, ripping out fur and skin until something hard slammed into her back. She was thrown of the warrior and sent tumbling, turning back to face her attacker and starting the fight anew.

It seemed to go on forever. The clans were evenly matched and both fighting with incredible furiosity. Few cats had even run from the fighting, still pushing on with whatever injuries they’d collected until they fell, panting in the grass, physically unable to continue.

Raggedsplash was feeling herself growing tired, but she wasn’t going to stop. Not until Thunderclan had been pushed back into their territory. With a screech, she threw herself at a pure white she-cat and the two went tumbling to the ground, wrestling with a screech. Raggedsplash bit hard into her chest when she suddenly felt something grab her from behind.

It wrenched her away and threw her to the ground, before landing heavily on top. She looked up, baring her teeth to fight back when she paused. He was panting, warm golden eyes ferociously wild, his gold fur stained with blood.

At first, she thought Gildedleaf was going to attack her but then he paused, apparently realizing who was beneath him. He opened his mouth to say something but there was a loud screech and a dark brown pelt went hurtling into him, pushing him off. “GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!”

Beetleflight and Gildedleaf rolled away together and Raggedsplash leaped to her feet. Her brother was glaring at Gildedleaf with hatred. “You SCUM! I thought you were supposed to protect the cats you love!”

Gildedleaf froze. “What are you talking about,” he growled. Raggedsplash felt something cold spreading through her chest.

“You think I didn’t know where my own sister was going every night? You don’t think I never tried to follow her?! I let it happen because she was happy with you!” With a screech, he clawed at the Thunderclan cat below him. “But I won’t let you hurt her!”

Raggedsplash wanted to keep listening, to ask Beetleflight more but she felt claws dig into her leg and whipped around to face the white she-cat from before. She snarled and clawed back at her, the two falling into battle once again.

But it wasn’t long later that she heard a terrible noise. A horrible, painful screech that had her dropping the warrior and whipping around, just in time to see Beetleflight falling, a ragged wound cutting across his neck, and Gildedleaf standing over his body.

Horror filled her chest and she forgot about the warrior, the fight, everything. “NO!” She screamed and ran towards her brother, throwing herself on top of him, but she knew, when she touched him and felt no pulse, heard no breath, that he was dead.

She only realized a moment later that the battle had gone quiet. Both clans were staring at the fallen warrior with shock. She heard, disantly, Ravenstar snarling to Applestar. “You’ve gone too far this time. I won’t sacrifice any more warriors over a piece of land, but I won’t be forgetting this, Applestar.” The Thunderclan leader only snarled back as the Shadowclan warriors began to retreat.

Raggedsplash didn’t care, moaning over her brother’s fallen body until she felt someone touch her shoulder. “Come on. We’ll take him back to camp and sit vigil for him.” Jetscale sounded shocked, voice filled with sadness, but she was nudging Raggedsplash to her feet.

Mechanically, she did as her sister directed. She barely heard Gildedleaf stammering apologies and offering to help, nor did she care when Jetscale snarled back, “I think you’ve done enough.”

She helped carry Beetlflight back to camp, her entire body numb and head low until they laid him down in the middle of camp. She and Jetscale took their places next to him and sat through the night, mourning his loss.

Only a few hours ago, she’d berated him for arguing. Now she’d do anything just to hear them fighting again.

The anger began to rise in her as the sun began to peak above the horizon. The numbness replaced by hot, blazing rage. Towards Thunderclan. Towards Applestar. Towards _Gildedleaf._ And when the elders came out to take his body away to bury him, she turned and left. Nobody tried to stop her as she stormed out of camp and took off towards Thunderclan territory.

It was stupid - why would he be there? What reason did he have to turn up at all? But still, she just felt like she needed to go to their spot, if for nothing else then getting out of camp, releasing her anger somewhere that wouldn’t give her away.

But, to her shock, she saw him at the border, his golden head bowed. She stopped right before him, sides heaving as she glared at him. He looked up slowly when he realized she was standing there and opened his mouth to speak.

“Shut up,” she snarled. He clamped his jaw shut immediately. “You...you…..how could you?! Were you angry with me or something? Did you think killing my brother would make me want to go to Thunderclan with you?!”

Gildedleaf looked shocked. “N-no! That’s not what-”

But Raggedsplash wasn’t hearing it. “Did you kill him because he knew about us? Couldn’t handle it if the truth got out so you thought you’d silence the person that knew?!”

He tried to speak again, but she was in hysterics. “And don’t tell me it was an ‘accident!’ Oh, no, it’s just too much of a coincidence! I bet you didn’t mean for me to see, hoping that I thought it was some other Thunderclan warrior that finished him off but I saw! I saw you kill him! He’d dead because of you and even if you didn’t mean it, it’s still your fault! My brother...MY BROTHER IS DEAD!”

As if the words had truly cemented it into her heart, she burst into tears, crouching to the ground and pressing her head into the dirt. She sobbed and cried and mourned for him, the pain was almost too much to bear. But Gildedleaf didn’t move, shifting uncomfortably, as if he didn’t know what to do.

“Listen...Raggedsplash, I promise...it wasn’t personal at all. It really was an accident.”

“You shouldn’t have hurt him at all! You should have just run away!”

“I couldn’t have done that - he was just a Shadowclan warrior to me. I can’t betray my clan.”

“So you’re saying that it’s alright if my clanmates get hurt and die, as long as it’s not me?”

“Well...yeah.”

She hadn’t expected him to say it. She froze and stopped crying. She stood up and stared at him, feeling oddly calm all of a sudden, the anger and sorrow so intense in her chest that she felt nothing anymore. She stared at him for a while.

“Tell me you love me.”

“What?”

“You hear me. Tell me you love me.”

Gildedleaf stared at her and as the seconds ticked by, she felt the pit in her stomach growing wider and wider.

“I....Raggedsplash…of course I do…”

“Then say it. Say it to me right now or it means nothing.”

Something in his expression changed then and he stood up taller, looking her directly in the eye. “If you were a cat of Thunderclan, I would love you with all my heart.”

It was like ice had frozen her insides. “So you’ll only love me if I leave my clan and join yours.”

“Yes.”

She stood and, for a moment, hope gleamed in Gildedleaf’s eyes. She felt a deep disgust through the freezing cold and curled her lip. “Then shove your love up your ass. I don’t want it.”

She turned and swept into the forest, not looking back at Gildedleaf once. She didn’t care about him anymore, she didn’t care what he did - she knew who he was now, and she wasn’t going to give another night to a cat like that.


	5. Birdcage

The freedom from Gildedleaf didn’t come as expected. She thought that she’d be able to live her life free from him, free from his influence, free from sleepless nights running through the woods, to focus completely on becoming a great Shadowclan warrior.

But when she felt a jolt in her stomach and realized how swollen she’d become...she realized with dread that she would never be free.

Jetscale visited her often in the nursery, bringing her food and water and talking to her, which Raggedsplash found helped a lot with her morale. The first few days were the worst - anger, grief, and hatred filled her every moment and she wished nothing more than for the kits in her belly to die, to not exist anymore so she could live the way she wanted to. But only because Jetscale talked her down, helped her see reason, that she felt the change.

As time went on, her attitude towards the kits began to change. It wasn’t their fault, after all, that she’d broken up with their father. It wasn’t their fault that their parents came from different clans. Nothing was their fault and Raggedsplash couldn’t blame them for existing. And as time went on, she began to relax into this position as queen, even realizing that she loved them, despite the fact that they hadn’t come into the world just yet.

The day when the kits came was equal parts the worst and best day of her life. Stretched out, wracked with pain and moaning, with Jetscale standing over her to comfort her as Nettleberry helped her deliver. Only when the pain stopped did she dare look around. The medicine cat was standing there, a big smile on his face and two little kits mewling at his paws.

She blinked at them before reaching forward and pulling them close until they latched onto her belly. One of them was black, with little gold patches over her fur and the other was soft ginger. She was reminded, with a lurch, of his father just looking at him, but their pelts were different. While Gildedleaf’s was more of bright yellow, the kit’s fur was more brown and much more pleasant to look at.

“What are you going to name them?”

Jetscale had leaned down, softly touching the kits with her nose.

Raggedsplash thought for a moment before gently touching the black one with her tail. “This one will be Emberkit and this one will be Acornkit.” She moved her tail to the ginger kit. 

Jetscale purred happily and nuzzled her sister. “Those are very nice names.”

Raggedsplash smiled and watched fondly as the kits pressed against her belly. This was all okay. She was okay with this. She loved her kits with all her heart and it didn’t matter who their father was. She didn’t have to think about him. She didn’t have to care. She just had to love them and raise them to be the best Shadowclan warriors they could be.

…

She had a number of visitors in the days to come, including Ravenstar who congratulated her on her kits and expressed hope to know who the father was, which Raggedsplash replied with only a nervous chuckle. A moon had passed since then and the kits had at last opened their eyes and had used every moment of the seeing world to cause as much trouble in the nursery as possible.

Raggedsplash had her paws full, trying to reign in the two young kittens from their attempts to escape the nursery and explore the camp to climbing all over Toadspring, the pregnant queen who was at first amused but had eventually become annoyed when they woke her up constantly from naps and such. 

Multiple times Raggedsplash had fallen asleep only to have Nettleberry waking her up carrying her kits that had tried to raid his medicine supply or one of the warriors announcing he’d caught them trying to sneak out of camp. And they were only one moon old!

“Acornki! Emberkit!” she snapped. “I can see you over there, trying to sneak out!”

The two kits looked up guiltily from the corner of the nursery, where’d they’d been feigning sleep. “S-sorry mama.”

She huffed. “Can you two go one day without making trouble?”

The two kits stumbled over, tripping over their little feet until they started to climb onto their mother. “Nope!” Emberkit mewled. “It’s so boring in here!”

She rolled her eyes. “With all the ruckus you’ve made it hasn’t been boring since before you were born!”

Acornkit squealed as she gently batted him off her shoulder and made to jump back onto her. They played for a little while before the kits grew hungry and fell silent, suckling at her belly.

Raggedsplash smiled as she watched, leaning forward to nuzzle them gently. She was just getting ready to rest her head when a shadow fell over the nursery entrance. She looked up and was surprised to see Ravenstar standing there.

She dipped her head. “Ravenstar. What can I do for you?”

“Bring your kits into the clearing.” Raggedsplash felt a jolt at the cold tone that Ravenstar was giving her. “Right now.”

The leader turned and swept away, leaving Raggedsplash feeling like freezing rain had drenched her skin. She got up stiffly, ignoring her kits mewls of protest. “Wait, mama, I wasn’t done!”

“Come on,” she murmured, pushing them towards the entrance. “We’re going out.”

The kits yelped with excitement and tumbled out, probably overjoyed to actually be allowed to leave the nursery. They didn’t understand what was going on, although neither did Raggedsplash, but her stomach dropped to her chest when she saw much of the clan gathered in the middle.

Ravenstar was perched on the Pinebranch above their heads, glaring down at the queen. Once she’d herded her kits beneath her and came to a stop, the leader spoke.

“Raggedsplash. You’re going to tell me who these kits’ father is.”

She felt her stomach hollow. “I...I don’t know why you’re asking me this. It’s a right of all queens-”

“Silence! I am your leader and you will tell me right now who the father is!”

Raggedsplash tried to keep herself composed, staring up at Ravenstar. “He is a Shadowclan warrior, I assure you.”

“No he isn’t!” the leader snapped. “There are no golden Shadowclan warriors that could have fathered these kits and I know my warriors! They would not abandon their mother in the nursery for a moon! You will give me a name, Raggedsplash!”

The game was up. She couldn’t hide it any longer. The kits had grown silent at her feet, finally realizing that something serious was happening and looking around with fear. Raggedsplash closed her eyes and bit down on her tongue before looking back up, straight at Ravenstar.

“Gildedleaf.”

There was a collective gasp from the warriors of Shadowclan and murmurs began cropping up all over the clearing. “The Thunderclan warriors?” “But he’s the one who killed Beetleflight!” “Traitor!” “Half-clan scum!”

Ravenstar glared down at Raggedsplash from her place and she was reminded of how much the leader hated Thunderclan and their leader, how she had vowed to take revenge for Beetleflight. Suddenly overcome with terror, she wrapped her tail around her kits and pulled them close.

The gesture wasn’t lost on Ravenstar, who narrowed her eyes. “You have betrayed your clan, Raggedsplash. You’ve broken the warrior code and mothered kits with an enemy of Shadowclan. The blood of your kits is tainted by the arrogance of Thunderclan. They don’t belong here...and neither do you. You will remove yourself and your kits from Shadowclan territory. Should you ever step foot here again, we will treat you like an enemy.”

She stared up at her leader with horror, feeling cold at every point of her body. “B-but...Ravenstar, please! I have nowhere to go, they’re only one moon old…”

“Should I care?!” The leader snarled. “They can die, then, and you with them and I wouldn’t lose a single days’ sleep!”

“The warrior code says-”

“It does not matter what the code says - I am the leader of Shadowclan and my word is law! And my word is for you and your kits to leave Shadowclan forever!”

There weren’t any other protests from the warriors of Shadowclan. Most weren’t looking at her, but she caught a few hateful glares and snarls from the cats she’d once called friend. Realizing that she had no other option, and that this was really happening, Raggedsplash stood.

“What’s happening, mama?” Emberkit squeaked.

“Nothing, dear one,” she murmured, beginning to walk towards the entrance. “We’re just going for a little walk, okay?”

“In the territory?” Acornkit squealed, jumping ahead. “Really?!”

“Yes, but you need to stick close to me, alright?”

They both nodded and did their best to stay close to Raggedsplash and not go running off. She led them away from Shadowclan camp and towards the border that would take her away. It was more painful than anything, passing through the pine forest and knowing that she might never return.

“Mama, I wanna go home…” Acornkit whimpered, exhausted from the walk at this point.

“We have to keep going, okay? We’re almost there.”

Emberkit had quieted a while ago, head down and tail trailing with exhaustion. At last, they reached the edge of territory and Raggedsplash paused. One more step...and she would leave everything behind. She looked back at the territory with longing, feeling a deep pain in her heart. 

“Mama, what are you looking at?” Acornkit mewled when she kept looking.

But Raggedsplash was looking more intently now. She’d seen movement and watched as a dark shape came bounding up to her, panting and looking dishelved.

“Caught you,” Jetscale breathed.

Raggedsplash looked away shamefully. “I know what you’re going to say. ‘How could I do this with the cat that killed Beetleflight?’ I don’t wanna hear it.”

“I knew, Raggedsplash.”

She looked up with surprise and Jetscale gave her a smirk. “You don’t think Beetleflight kept it to himself, did you?”

She blinked and looked quizzicly at her sister. “Then…”

“I didn’t like it, but he told me to stay out of it, because you were happy. I never imagined it would turn out like this. I’m sorry, I should have told you that I knew earlier but…” she shifted her paws. “Well, things were going okay! I thought it was over and wasn’t important anymore. I guess I was wrong.”

Raggedsplash stared at her sister for a moment, emotion beginning to overwhelm her senses. Without meaning to, tears began to slowly trail down her eyes and a tremble came over her body. “J-jetscale…”

To her shock, her sister burst into tears and bushed forward, pressing her head against her neck. “I’m going to miss you...so much, Raggedsplash. I wish I could come with you!”

She leaned back and let herself be overcome for a moment, grieving her leave from Shadowclan, the life she had built and the one she thought she would have, the fear for her kits’ future...all of it. They cried for a moment, holding each other while the two kits watched with fear.

Eventually, they pulled apart and Jetscale struggled to control her breathing. “Where will you go?”

Raggedsplash shrugged rubbing at her eyes with her paws. “I don’t know. I guess I’ll figure it out as I’ll go.”

Jetscale gave her a sad smile. “Well...if you’re ever around, I’ll look out for you. I hope we see each other again.”

Raggedsplash nodded. “Me too.”

They touched noses one last time before she turned and led her kits away, glancing back every so often until her sister disappeared into the distance.

“...We’re not going home, are we, mama?” Emberkit asked in a small voice.

“No, dear one. We’re finding a new home. Don’t worry, I will protect you.”

The kits didn’t talk anymore as they left Shadowclan territory behind and ventured out into the unknown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is where my spree-posting ends, as I still have to write the rest of it. Comments are very much appreciated!

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry that the first chapter is so short, I just didn't know how to get through this naturally. The rest will be longer, though, don't worry! There's plenty of meat to this story.


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